Candidates crowd to replace Northam in state Senate

Three Democrats and two Republicans are jostling to replace state Sen. Ralph Northam, D-Norfolk, who was elected lieutenant governor on Tuesday.

As the Election Day dust settled, two of the candidates rolled out polished campaign websites, a reflection of the breakneck pace of special elections in Virginia.

The district includes parts of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Mathews County and the Eastern Shore.

Fresh off his own campaign victory, Del. Lynwood Lewis, an Eastern Shore Democrat, on Wednesday announced he would jump right into a Senate run.

Former Del. Paula Miller, a Norfolk Democrat, also announced her candidacy. Miller was a victim of the Republican-led redistricting in 2011 and chose not to seek re-election after she was lumped into a district with Lewis.

Northam's campaign treasurer, Andria McClellan, is also vying for the Senate seat.

The Democrats will hold their nominating caucus on Nov. 16 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., according to Bud Ward, chairman of the Mathews County Democratic Committee.

"I was hoping for maybe a week of solitude" after Tuesday's election, Ward quipped. Instead, he and other party chairs will be busy organizing for the caucus.

Two Republicans are seeking the GOP nomination.

One is Wayne Coleman, chief executive of freight-forwarding company CV International. In his announcement he calls himself "a businessman, not a politician."

He's being joined by John Coggeshall, a Norfolk lawyer.

"As of last night I'm a bona fide candidate to be nominated in this lightning fast two-week campaign," Coggeshall said.

A spokesman for the Republican Party of Virginia said other people have expressed varying amounts of interest in the race. Richard Ottinger, a lawyer, is among those rumored to be considering a run.

The party has set a Nov. 21 date for its firehouse primary.

Gov. Bob McDonnell will decide the date of the special election.

Special elections typically don't attract the attention of a general election, but Northam's replacement could determine which party controls the narrowly divided Senate.

Currently the chamber is divided 20- 20, and the tie-breaking vote belongs to Republican Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling.

Northam will take that vote but his departure gives Republicans a chance for a pick-up. Northam won his most recent re-election campaign comfortably with 57 percent of the vote. However 54 percent of voters in the district's precincts chose McDonnell in 2009.